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OK folks, I've collected your questions from MousePad, Twitter, Facebook and e-mail about the just-announced Disneyland ticket price hike and how it affects YOU, and have gone straight to Disney for official clarification. Some of this comes from Disneyland's media relations department, some of it comes from the passholder hotline, but none of it is to be considered gospel. If you need a 100% confirmed definite answer for your situation, call Disney.

Tickets:

Q: Can I buy tickets online before the prices go up on Sunday and use them later this year?

A: Yes. Right now Disneyland is offering two types of ticket online, Theme Park tickets (good for 1-6 days depending on what you buy) and a Promotional Park Hopper Bonus Ticket. The Theme Park tickets are good through December 31, 2012, so if you're planning a visit before then, grab your tickets NOW. The Promotional Park Hopper Bonus Ticket is only valid through May 28th, so don't buy that one unless you're visiting next week.

Q: Can I buy ticket gift cards at my grocery store before the prices go up on Sunday and use them later this year?

A: Yes, just be sure to check the expiration date printed on the back of the gift card. We believe most currently in circulation have a December 31, 2012 expiration date.

Q: What happened to the 6-day ticket?

A: It will no longer be offered after May 20th. If that's the ticket you wanted for your next visit (before December 31, 2012 at least), you can purchase it before prices go up on May 20th.

Annual Passports:

Q: Can I buy an annual pass or AP Gift Voucher online before the prices go up on Sunday and use it later this year?

A: Yes. We've been told that annual pass vouchers or gift vouchers purchased online at Disneyland.com before prices go up on May 20th can be activated after May 20th without penalty - you will not be required to pay the difference between the purchase price and the then-current AP price so long as you activate the pass before December 31, 2012. If you activate the pass on or after January 1, 2013 you will be required to pay the difference. [Note: we've now confirmed this date - vouchers purchased online have a "redeem by" date printed on them, but that date does not appear anywhere on the Disney website]

Q: Can I buy Annual Pass gift cards at my grocery store before the prices go up on Sunday and use them later this year?

A: Yes, just be sure to check the expiration date printed on the back of the gift card.

Q: My Annual Pass expires in May or June, can I renew it now at the lower price?

A: Yes. Passholders with May or June expiration dates can renew at the current price provided you renew no later than 60 days after your pass expires.

Q: My Annual Pass expires in July/August/September/some month after June, can I renew it now at the lower price?

A: No. Disney is only allowing passholders to renew at the current price if their pass expires within 40 days, but they've stretched that a few days to include all May and June expiration dates. However, you CAN purchase an annual pass voucher or gift voucher online at Disneyland.com before prices go up on May 20th, and activate that AP after May 20th without penalty. It's important to note that you will need to treat this as a NEW AP, not a renewal.

Q: I've been planning to upgrade my AP - can I do that by phone or online before the price goes up?

A: No. Upgrades must be done in person - there is no phone or online option.

New Q: Can I buy an annual pass online before the prices go up on Sunday using the monthly payment option but wait to activate the pass later this year?

A: This is sort of a tricky one, but we've been told by two cast members at the AP hotline that this IS possible. First, this only works if you're buying a Premium or lower AP (Premier passes can not be purchased online and don't qualify for payments anyway) AND you live in California. AP Gift Vouchers are not eligible for the installment plan.

We've been told that your down payment is payable immediately, and that your installment payments will begin as per the usual schedule, but you can wait to activate the AP before December 31, 2012 with no penalty. Once again we're getting conflicting answers from different sources, so we advise you to call Disney directly (714-781-PASS) before you do this to confirm it will work for your needs.

I asked in the other thread but any word on the new price of the black out tickets?

Life is too short to wake up with regrets ~So love the people who treat you right
Forget about those who don't ~ Believe everything happens for a reason.
If you get a chance, take it If it changes your life, let it ~Nobody said life would be easy,
they just promised it would most likely be worth it~ remember, Sometimes Miracles Hide

Just to clarify -- if I am currently paying in the $400s for my pass and my pass is set to expire June 29th 2012, am I renewing within 40 days of Sunday, May 20th at my current pass price, or at a discounted rate of the new price? Sorry, I'm a little confused. The postcard I received in the mail mentioned a $20 discount "off the renewal price."

I tried renewing my pass online today and I got a message stating my pass was not yet eligible for renewal. At Ralph's by my apt they only have So Cal Select through Deluxe passes, but no Premium pass gift cards. I am kind of stressing about this

Just to clarify -- if I am currently paying in the $400s for my pass and my pass is set to expire June 29th 2012, am I renewing within 40 days of Sunday, May 20th at my current pass price, or at a discounted rate of the new price? Sorry, I'm a little confused. The postcard I received in the mail mentioned a $20 discount "off the renewal price."

You are renewing your pass (that expires June 29th - LUCKY!) at the now-current price, plus you get the $20 discount.

Okay we were able to buy 3 of our 4 six day passes before the price increase but unfortunatly the fourth pass cant be purchased til the end of may so my question is since the six day is no longer available can we buy the five day pass and upgrade it to a six day at the park. We were expecting June for price hikes but at least we got most of our passes before.

so my question is since the six day is no longer available can we buy the five day pass and upgrade it to a six day at the park.

My understanding is that the six-day pass just won't exist after Sunday, but you should definitely call Disney and ask this one. I'll be there tomorrow and I'll see if I can get an answer, but that may not be fast enough for what you need.

Thanks so much for all the work you are doing trying to get questions answered! I haven't seen this asked, hope I'm not posting a repeat. Our current passes expire in June (lucky us). When they say "can be renewed at the current price" does that mean we would have to get the same level we currently have or would we be able to "go down" and still get the current pricing for that level? (Last year we were going to WDW so bought Premiers - we don't need those this year). Thanks for any help you can provide.

What is the difference between the Premium Annual pass and the voucher? We will be going in November. Which should I buy now to avoid having to pay the additional increase?

If you buy online you're buying a voucher that you have to activate when you visit Disneyland. You have until December 31, 2012 to activate the voucher, and it is valid for one year from the day you activate it.

Originally Posted by DMommyP

Our current passes expire in June (lucky us). When they say "can be renewed at the current price" does that mean we would have to get the same level we currently have or would we be able to "go down" and still get the current pricing for that level?

You can renew to a lower level at the current (pre May 20) price provided you do so within 60 days of your expiration date. Did you get your renewal form? It should have all of the pass levels and prices listed. You may also qualify for the $20 renewal discount - they don't offer it on Premier passes, but I believe Premiums get it.

Our APs expire in November. If we buy vouchers online today, how long would we have to wait after the actual expiration date to make sure our APs are considered "new" not a "renewal"? Not sure what to do, since we normally use our passes quite a bit during Nov. and Dec.

Our APs expire in November. If we buy vouchers online today, how long would we have to wait after the actual expiration date to make sure our APs are considered "new" not a "renewal"? Not sure what to do, since we normally use our passes quite a bit during Nov. and Dec.

My understanding is that you can activate a new pass the day after your old pass expires. I am double checking on this myself tomorrow (my AP expires ON December 31, so I will actually need to activate a new pass while my old pass is valid), and will report back here once I have an answer. However, since we're working with a deadline, I'd recommend that you call Disneyland tomorrow morning 714-781-PASS and ask before you buy a voucher.

My understanding is that you can activate a new pass the day after your old pass expires. I am double checking on this myself tomorrow (my AP expires ON December 31, so I will actually need to activate a new pass while my old pass is valid), and will report back here once I have an answer. However, since we're working with a deadline, I'd recommend that you call Disneyland tomorrow morning 714-781-PASS and ask before you buy a voucher.

AVP

Thanks, AVP! I'll call later on and report back with Disney's response.

My understanding is that you can activate a new pass the day after your old pass expires. I am double checking on this myself tomorrow (my AP expires ON December 31, so I will actually need to activate a new pass while my old pass is valid), and will report back here once I have an answer. However, since we're working with a deadline, I'd recommend that you call Disneyland tomorrow morning 714-781-PASS and ask before you buy a voucher.

AVP

I have done exactly this. Last year, I bought vouchers before the increase. Youngest's pass expired on Christmas day. I didn't want to deal with the crowds the next day, so late Christmas night, we turned her voucher in and got her new pass.

Our deluxe APs expire on June 3, 2012. We are going down for Memorial Day weekend and planned on renewing to Premium on May 25. Given the price increase, we upgraded and increased to premiums on line. Our new passes won't arrive before we head down to DL on the 25th. I spoke to a CM and they daid it wouldn't be a problem and we wouldn't be blocked out for the weekend. I just need our confirmation and they will allow access. Has anyone done this before? I'm still wanting additional confirmation.

I called the annual passholder hotline and the CM I talked to seemed to say that the vouchers didn't expire, or that they wouldn't expire until after one year, or that you wouldn't be asked to pay the difference till after two years. I didn't ask him to read me the policy verbatim, but he did confirm that there wouldn't be a problem for my scenario (activating at the end of August).

One more question...(sorry)...our passes renew on July 17. It's a special date for us. When I told my daughter about the increase and buying vouchers to activate the day after, she actually started crying. I know it sounds silly, but it's a personal thing. Opinions on whether they'll let us activate the new ones on July 17? Thanks!

To all who come to this happy place...quit stepping on the back of my shoes!

AVP, thank you. Any idea if I can use Disney Rewards dollars to buy the voucher online today?

I believe you have to call and order those by phone - there seems to be no way to do it online, but a reader said they did it by phone yesterday.

Originally Posted by Tinkermommy

One more question...(sorry)...our passes renew on July 17. It's a special date for us. When I told my daughter about the increase and buying vouchers to activate the day after, she actually started crying. I know it sounds silly, but it's a personal thing. Opinions on whether they'll let us activate the new ones on July 17? Thanks!

I'm in the same boat, in that I have to activate my new pass ON the day it expires (12/31/12) if I get/use a voucher. It's one of the questions I have to ask today, but since you already have to call them I'd ask when you call.

One more question...(sorry)...our passes renew on July 17. It's a special date for us. When I told my daughter about the increase and buying vouchers to activate the day after, she actually started crying. I know it sounds silly, but it's a personal thing. Opinions on whether they'll let us activate the new ones on July 17? Thanks!

If you can get your daughter to cry at the ticket booth, the odds are good. If the date is that important to you, and they tell you no, you could probably make a decision on July 17 to convert your vouchers to an AP renewal at the current rates. It seems like an awful lot of money to spend to get a pass that expires sooner, but I understand that emotions do sometimes beat logic. I would probably buy the vouchers now and hope for the best. I don't think you will lose money, even if you later do have to pay more.

As an aside, now that our APs are as/more expensive that our WDW counterparts, I think it's ridiculous that there isn't a children's voucher price. Also, any word yet on what the renewal discount will be? If we don't get the approx $50 that WDW does I'll be pretty annoyed! Which is ironic since I have rarely renewed my pass, almost always waiting until my next visit to re-up since even before this increase the renewal discount didn't make financial sense.

Will they let me "upgrade" to a premier at Disneyland using a DL 4-day park hopper and a WDW AP voucher?
Both would be unused when I went to the ticket booth (or I could use one day on the DL hopper if that makes it better. It would at WDW). Or would it be better to just use the WDW AP voucher to upgrade to a premier at DL?

I was able to use a WDW AP and a DL 4-day unused when they first introduced the premier and you had to do all that at the AP center in DL. (I entered the park on a Give-a-day ticket.) - but now I'm thinking I may use a WDW AP voucher!

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